THE GUARDIAN: LGBT group complains to Murcia government after teenager was given report that included line: ‘Current illness: homosexual’
A Pride march in the Valencia region of Spain. LGBTI activists in Murcia want their regional authorities to apologise over a teenager’s treatment at Reina Sofía hospital, saying some in the health service ‘view sexual orientation as an illness’. Photograph: Biel Aliño/EPA
A family and an LGBT collective in south-east Spain are demanding answers and an apology after a 19-year-old gay woman who visited a gynaecologist over a menstrual condition was diagnosed with “homosexuality”.
On Monday the woman went to an appointment at the Reina Sofía hospital in the city of Murcia. After being examined she was given a piece of paper that included the line: “Current illness: homosexual.”
The woman’s mother told the online paper elDiario.es that the gynaecologist had asked her daughter whether he could include her sexual orientation in his report, and that she had consented – despite her surprise – as she thought at the time it might be relevant.
“At first, I thought it was funny, but it just isn’t,” said the patient.» | Sam Jones in Madrid | Thursday, October 7, 2021
May 2, 2020 • When a nice Irish Catholic queer 'boy' falls in love with a nice English Jewish queer 'boy', he frets about whether he should change Gods too.
TV Presenter/Producer SIMON ATKINS decides to check it out, in order to see if there's more to the issue than just undergoing an (extremely painful) adult circumcision. His very entertaining search takes him from liberal North London to ultra-conservative Orthodox Jerusalem via Israel's gay hotspot Tel Aviv.
It has taken the Evangelical Fellowship in the Church in Wales (EFCW) three weeks to respond to the decision, and in a statement published Monday (27 September), it accuses the church of defying “the apostolic faith as revealed in scripture.”
In its statement, the EFCW said it recognises that the church has been “insensitive and even hurtful” to LGBT+ people in the past and that believes the church should welcome LGBT+ people – as long as they don’t have sex.
“The only biblical context for sexual activity is heterosexual marriage,” it wrote, accusing the church of dishonouring “those who, persuaded that Scripture teaches that sexual activity is restricted to heterosexual marriage, have chosen to remain celibate”.
The group claims that allowing blessings of same-sex partnerships within the church has “changed the Church’s doctrine on marriage”.
The statement continued: “This decision has damaged the Church in Wales’ relationship with the majority of the provinces in the global Anglican Communion, which remain committed to an orthodox understanding of human sexuality.” "Such disunity is a grave and serious matter which grieves the heart of God." » | Alice Broster | Friday, October 1, 2021
How pathetic! How can these people speak on behalf of God with such authority? Do they have a hotline to God?
This is anthropomorphism, pure and simple! First of all, how can they possibly know that God has the same emotions as humans? In fact, does He have any emotions at all? To believe in God does not mean that one has to accept that He sees, feels and perceives everything in the same way that human beings do. That is such a simplistic portrayal of God. It reminds me of the old folk who often said that when there was a thunderstorm, it was a sign of God’s anger! Give us a break! Such silly notions!
In any case, if one is to believe that there is indeed a God, then one is also to believe that we are all God’s children. Further, we are born just as God intended us to be. Because Christians, and other believers, insist that God is perfect and that He doesn’t err.
PINK NEWS: China will ban video games featuring same-sex relationships, ‘effeminate’ men and moral choices, according to a leaked memo.
The internal memo from a recent internal training by the state-backed gaming association was revealed by the South China Morning Post, lays out new restrictions for approving video games in China.
According to the publication, the memo said that video games must not be viewed as “pure entertainment”, and should instead convey “a correct set of values”.
Games that feature queer relationships or “effeminate males”, the memo states, should not be approved for release in China.
“If regulators can’t tell the character’s gender immediately, the setting of the characters could be considered problematic and red flags will be raised,” it added.
Games that allow players to make moral choices between good and evil should also not be approved, according to the memo. » | Lily Wakefield | Saturday, October 2, 2021
THE MOSCOW TIMES: Russia’s LGBT, radical feminist and child-free groups should be recognized as “extremist,” the chairman of an influential government commission said Wednesday.
“LGBT ideology, radical feminism and child-free movements should be recognized as extremism — an extremist ideology,” the state-run TASS news agency cited Andrei Tsyganov, chairman of a commission for the protection of children at the Roskomnadzor communications regulator, as saying Wednesday.
The proposed ban would help protect Russian children and adolescents from the influence of destructive content on social networks and the internet, Tsyganov said. » | The Moscow Times | Thursday, September 30, 2021
BBC: Lawmakers in Hungary have passed legislation prohibiting the sharing with minors of any content seen as promoting homosexuality and gender change.
Speaking before the legislation was passed Hungary's Momentum Movement MEP Katalin Cseh said the law would make it very hard for LGBTQ people to live in the country.
She told BBC World News: "I think it's a total disgrace, really, that such a vote is taking place in the 21st Century in Europe under the disguise of making a law against paedophilia."
Ms Cseh said her Momentum Movement party, which was part of Renew Europe group in the European Parliament would be looking to see what action they could take.
The Viktor Orban's right-wing government does not recognise gay marriage and has a law restricting gay adoption.Watch the video » | BBC | Tuesday, June 15, 2021
Peter Szijjarto, Hungary's minister of foreign affairs and trade, speaks during an interview with the Associated Press at United Nations headquarters, Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021, during the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
ASSOCIATED PRESS: UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The right-wing populist government in Hungary is attracting conservative thinkers from the United States who admire its approaches to migration, LGBT issues and national sovereignty — all matters that have put the country at odds with its European partners, who see not a conservative haven but a worrying erosion of democratic institutions on multiple fronts.
Hungary’s top diplomat has a few things to say about that.
In an interview Thursday with The Associated Press on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly’s meeting of world leaders, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said his country would not cede ground on policies that have caused the European Union to impose financial penalties and start legal proceedings against it over violations of the bloc’s values.
“We do not compromise on these issues because we are a sovereign country, a sovereign nation. And no one, not even the European Commission, should blackmail us regarding these policies,” Szijjarto said.
Topping the list of contentious government policies: a controversial Hungarian law that the EU says violates the fundamental rights of LGBT people. That led the EU’s executive commission to delay billions in economic recovery funds earmarked for Hungary — a move Szijjarto called “a purely political decision” and “blackmail.” The law, he says, is meant to protect children from pedophiles and ”homosexual propaganda.”
“We will not make [make] compromises about the future of our children,” Szijjarto told the AP.
The law, passed in June, makes it illegal to promote or portray sex reassignment or homosexuality to minors under 18 in media content. It also contains provisions that provide harsher penalties for pedophilia. Critics say it conflates pedophilia with homosexuality and stigmatizes sexual minorities. » | Justin Spike | Friday, September 24, 2021
PINK NEWS: A rural region in southern Poland scrapped a motion opposing “LGBT ideology” after the European Union (EU) threatened to cut funding.
Several Polish regions, towns and cities have adopted hostile resolutions that declare the areas “free from LGBT ideology”. The EU has harshly rebuked the so-called ‘LGBT-free zones’ since they began popping up across Poland in 2019.
On Wednesday (22 September), the regional assembly of Swietokrzyskie voted in a special session to abolish the anti-LGBT+ resolution, Euronews reported.
At the special regional assembly, 25 councillors in Swietokrzyskie passed a new resolution stating that Poland’s constitution guarantees parents the right to raise their children consistent with their beliefs and views. But it stated the constitution also ensures a “guarantee of equality and fair treatment for all”.
LGBT+ activist Bart Staszewski said it was a “great day for Poland and great success of activists and civil society”, the Associated Press reported. » | Maggie Baska | Thursday, September 23, 2021
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: In Polen haben sich fast hundert Städte und Regionen zu „LGBT-Ideologie-freien“ Zonen erklärt. Doch nun rücken einige wieder davon ab – weil die EU droht, regionale Fördermittel zu streichen.
Eine Region im Süden Polens auf Druck der EU hin eine Resolution gegen nicht-heterosexuelle Menschen (LGBT) aufgehoben. Das Regionalparlament der Woiwodschaft Swietokryskie stimmt am Mittwoch dafür, eine 2019 verabschiedete Erklärung über „Widerstand gegen die LGBT-Ideologie“ zu streichen.
In Polen haben sich knapp hundert Städte und Regionen zur „LGBT-Ideologie-freien“ Zone erklärt. Die meisten davon befinden sich im stark katholisch geprägten Osten und Süden des Landes. » | Quelle: dpa | Donnerstag, 23. September 2021
Jun 21, 2018 • Join me on my gay date with Pedro while we explore Lima, Peru, where we will visit amazing landmarks such as Plaza de Armas, enjoy arguably the best Pisco in the world and taste one of their most famous dishes: ceviche. We will also discuss how it is being gay and Latino in South America. Ready? Let’s go!
THE NEW YORK TIMES: E.U. leaders say that they will do all they can to thwart a proposed new law in Hungary that would, they say, equate homosexuality with pedophilia.
BRUSSELS — A culture war between Hungary and the European Union escalated Wednesday after a top official from the bloc said she would use all her powers to thwart a new Hungarian law that critics say targets the L.G.B.T. community.
The law, which would ban the depiction or promotion of homosexuality to those under 18 years of age, an addition to legislation targeting pedophiles, has been approved in Hungary’s Parliament but still must be endorsed by the country’s president.
The legislation was sharply criticized on Wednesday by the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
“This Hungarian bill is a shame,” Ms. von der Leyen said in a statement. “This bill clearly discriminates against people based on their sexual orientation. It goes against the fundamental values of the European Union: human dignity, equality and respect for human rights.”
Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, who has defended the law, will come under pressure to withdraw it during a European Union meeting of heads of state and government on Thursday and Friday. It is the latest confrontation between the European Union and Mr. Orban, who styles himself as the champion of an “illiberal democracy” that can sometimes run counter to the democratic values of the bloc.
Ms. von der Leyen described the European Union as a place “where you are free to be who you are and love whomever you want,” adding: “I will use all the powers of the commission to ensure that the rights of all E.U. citizens are guaranteed. Whoever they are and wherever they live within the European Union.” » | Steven Erlanger | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Prince William has said it would be 'absolutely fine' by him if any of his children come out as LGBT in the future. The Duke of Cambridge was visiting an LGBT charity which helps young people who have been made homeless because of their sexuality.
How do we balance the secular norms of an inclusive society with religious freedoms? LGBT and religious rights are both protected by law - so what happens when they clash? A change in the law is about to make it tougher for parents to remove their kids from relationship and sex education classes on religious grounds so, whose rights are more important?
THE GUARDIAN: On a day dedicated to ending prejudice, I feel more uneasy than ever before about the negative rhetoric around LGBT rights
Ispent last week in Cuba, a time which overlapped with what should have been the country’s 12th annual Conga Against Homophobia and Transphobia. The march, however, organised by the government and the brainchild of Mariela Castro – daughter of Raul – was cancelled, owing to “new tensions in the international and regional context”.
This essentially translates into a fear that people taking to the streets at a time of heightened tension in the region might turn into general unrest. But there is also the unmentioned fact that religious communities in Cuba are increasingly pushing back against the otherwise repressive state’s attempts to improve LGBT+ rights. Earlier in the year proposed changes to the constitution to allow same-sex marriages were scrapped after pressure from evangelical churches and sections of the population. A spontaneous civilian-organised march to replace the cancelled conga resulted in multiple arrests.
LGBT+ discrimination still exists the world over – this can be insiduous, quotidian prejudice or extreme hatred. Homosexual sex and relationships are still illegal in 69 countries (including 35 Commonwealth countries), and can be penalised with life imprisonment, while some countries still have the death penalty on their statute books. But LGBT+ individuals had become used to good news stories: be it the ground-breaking vote for same-sex marriage in Ireland or Ana Brnabić becoming Serbia’s first openly gay prime minister).
Now, however, as rightwing populism spreads around the world, there is a noticeable rise in bigotry. The LGBT+ community is feeling besieged once again. » | Hannah Jane Parkinson | Friday, May 17, 2019
THE GUARDIAN: Immigration law used for first time to deny entry to anti-gay preacher Steven Anderson
An anti-gay US Christian fundamentalist pastor who has been accused of Holocaust denial has become the first person to be barred from entering Ireland under a 20-year-old immigration law.
Steven Anderson was due to travel to Dublin on 26 May to preach in the city, but the Irish justice minister, Charlie Flanagan, took the unusual step to ban him from coming into the country.
More than 14,000 people signed an online petition set up by the Christian gay rights campaign group Changing Attitude Ireland calling on the Irish government to block Anderson’s trip to the country. The organisation claimed that in the past he had “advocated exterminating LGBT+ people”.
Confirming the barring order under the 1999 Immigration Act, Flanagan said: “I have signed the exclusion order under my executive powers in the interest of public policy.”
It is the first time the Irish government has used the legislation to bar anyone from the country. » | Henry McDonald | Monday, May 13, 2019
THE TELEGRAPH: Brunei's sultan called for Islamic teachings in the country to be strengthened as strict new sharia punishments, including death by stoning for gay sex and adultery, were due to come into force on Wednesday.
The tough penal code in the tiny country on tropical Borneo island - ruled by the all-powerful Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah - is set to be fully implemented following years of delays.
The laws, which also include amputation of hands and feet for thieves, will make Brunei the first place in East or Southeast Asia to have a sharia penal code at the national level, joining several mostly Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia.
Rape and robbery are also punishable by death under the code and many of the new laws, such as capital punishment for insulting the Prophet Mohammed, apply to non-Muslims as well as Muslims. » | Agence France-Presse | Wednesday, April 3, 2019
